I think a huge opportunity that has been created has been the proliferation of accessibility to things to people that are disabled. I was speaking to somebody who has been able to watch their favourite music live streamed, attend online courses, engage in talks and seminars that otherwise wouldn’t have been made easy for a disabled person to engage with and even work remotely too. I think this is truly amazing and it also highlights the way our society is so ableist; disabled people are often just left out of the conversations and I think the pandemic has shown that we can be adaptable and accommodating for everyone. According to data released this week, disabled people account for 60% of those who died in the first wave. I think the pandemic has presented an opportunity where we can show disabled people that their lives do matter just as much as anyone else and there needs to be more safe guarding and understanding of how many of them would have been shielding throughout this whole time. I think we can work on educating people around disabilities, genuinely working to remove a stigma and ensuring that all aspects of life remain accessible to disabled people through improving spaces and facilities and also embracing the nature of online events even when the pandemic is over.
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